Sign



Patented May `31, 1938 PATENT ori-'ICE SIGN Joseph Fodor, London, England `Application August 18, 1936, Serial No. 96,704 i In Great Britain August 22, 1935 e claims. (o1. 40-130) The present invention. relates to signs for advertising and other purposes which comprises luminous electric discharge tubes operated from high frequency current.

'Ihe present invention has for its object to provide a very simpleand cheap arrangement where- .by the text of the sign may be easily altered and wherein any desired wording may be easilyand cheaply built up from a supporting base Vand interchangeable standard letters.

According to the present invention a sign comprises a supporting base which is provided with a plurality of sockets at equal distancesvalong its length, said sockets being connected to a source of high frequency current and being adapted to receive a part or parts of a luminous electric `discharge tube and constituting the sole means for supplying the energy to the discharge tube.

The letters or symbols are made to standard dimensions so that any letter or symbol of any size, may be plugged into the standardizedsupporting base. The discharge tubes may have internal electrodes, in which case connection to the electrodes is effected on inserting the tube into the sockets. On the other hand, the discharge tube may have no internal electrodes, in'which case the sockets are made of conducting material and constitute external electrodes fo'x` the 4discharge tube when the tube is inserted in the supporting base. The several sockets in the supporting base may be all connected torone terminal of the high frequency generator or they may be variously connected to dierent terminals thereof. l e The base preferably comprises or is surrounded with a metallic screen, in order to prevent inter- .ference with local radio reception. The screen may `be earthed. l

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood reference will now be made, by way -of example, to the accompanying drawing, in

Fig. 1 shows aperspective view of one form of the invention.v

Fig. 2 shows a. section along. the line A-A in'V Fig. 1. Fig. 3 showsa side .view.

. Fig. 4 shows a discharge tube` with a special background construction the supporting base' comprises a square casing Iv which is preferably of metalvso as to constitute nate terminal, and theends of the 18 inch let-` vin order to make it light and hence for letters a screen for the high frequencyconductors. Supported within this casing is a strip of insulating material 2, which extends substantially the whole length of the casing. Holes are drilled-in the upper surface of this insulating strip into 5 which'metallic tubular sockets 3 are inserted and held by means of the screws 4, The sockets 3 are insulated from the metal casing l by means of n the insulating collars, 5. Thesockets are inserted in the insulating strip at equal distances along its length and the supporting base is made as long as desired to accommodate the sign to be displayed.

The end of the casing may be closed and provided with4 contact plugs 6 to which are electri- 15 cally connected the sockets 3 by Wires which pass within the casing and connect to the screws 4. All the sockets may be connected to one plug terminal 6, or. alternate sockets may be connected to separate plugs. The plug 6 may be inserted in the counter-part sockets in the high frequency generator 'l so as to' feed the tube Vbe made in dierent heights, for example, 61,35 inches, 12 inches and 18 inches, the 6 inch let- Y ters being secured between two adjacent terminals, the 12 inch'letters fitting into every alterters fitting into every fourth terminal, as shown in Fig. 1. Y

' Since high frequency current is used to energize the discharge tubes it is only necessary to insert one end of the discharge tube into a socket such as I `only a single upright tube is necessary which is inserted into a single socket. The tube is illuminated although only one end is supplied with current due to the capacity between the other partsV of the tube and earth. 50 Thecasing I may be about- 2 inches square and` of any desired length, and since itis unneces- .airy to provide the discharge tubes with internal electrodes a very simple sign is produced in which -the letters may be readily interchanged. Mor'e- 55 over, since the discharge tubes have no internal electrodes, they are very simple and cheap to manufacture.

As will be seen, the sockets constitute the sole means for supplying the high frequency current to the discharge tubes. The metal casing I is preferably earthed.

Various modifications may be made without departing from the invention. For example the high frequency generator may be arranged within the supporting base, or, alternatively, may be located at a point remote from the base.

When using certain letters or symbols, such as.

the letter E", in the supporting base, dilculty may be experienced in getting the luminousdischarge to extend through all the limbs so as to give uniform illumination. 'I'his difilculty may be overcome by providing the discharge tube with a background which forms or contains one or more conducting paths arranged to feed the high frequency current to the tube at the desired points.

The background may be formed of insulating material in which the conducting paths are embedded. Alternatively, it may consist of conducting material or it may be composed in part of conducting material and in part of insulating material.

The background may be visible or it may be concealed behind the tube or it maypartially envelope the tube leaving an opening on one side only through which the tube is visible. 'I'he background may support the tube or form a part of the support therefor. Alternatively, or in addition, the tube and background may be supported on a common base.

One method of constructing a discharge tube with a background is shown in Figs. 4 and 5, in which the luminous electric discharge tube I I is shown in the form ofa letter E, High frequency current is applied to the tube at the projection I2 when the tube is inserted in the supporting base. In the example shown no internal electrodes are provided.

In order to cause the discharge to pass uniformly through all the limbs of the tube the tube is provided with a background I3 of insulating material in which is embedded a conductor It terminating inthe electrodes I5, I6 and I1 arranged at the surface of the insulating material and adapted to lie adjacent the glass of the discharge tube at the ends of the limbsl as shown. The conductor is connected to a metallic contact I8 which nts into another socket in the supporting base. I

The high frequency current is i'ed electrostatically to the tube at the points I2, I5, I6 and I'I and it will be uniformly illuminated.

Of course, the tube may be provided with internal electrodes if desired. in which case the internal electrode I9 (see Fig. 6) is connected to a terminal on the rear surface of the tube which is adapted to engage with a -contact I5' embedded in the surface of the insulating background I3.

Instead of feeding the tube at various points it may be fed throughout its length by providing a conducting background as shown in Fig. '7. In this figure the metallic background 2| is connected to the terminal I8 whereby the high frequency current is electrostatically fed through the tube throughout its length. In an alternative modification the conductor I 4 (Fig. 4) could be located on the surface of the insulating material adjacent the tubes whereby the same eifect of feeding the tube throughout its length may be obtained.

' Since when using high .frequency current the tubes may be illuminated by connecting it to only one terminal of the high frequency generator, the projection I2 may be dispensed with and the tube illuminated by feeding the high frequency current to the tube solely through the terminal I8 which is connected to feed the tube at one or more points.

I claim:-

1. A sign comprising a. supporting base, a plurality of equally spaced sockets carried by said supporting base, a high frequency generator conl nected to supply high frequency current to said sockets, and luminous electric discharge tubes having the form of the characters to be displayed. the ends of which tubes are so dimensioned and spaced that the tubes may be interchangeably mounted in said sockets in order to feed the tubes from the high frequency current, said sockets constituting the sole means for supplying the high frequency current to said tubes.

2. A sign comprising a supporting base, a plurality of conducting sockets equally spaced along the length of said base, a high frequency generator connected to feed high frequency current to said sockets, and a plurality of luminous electric discharge tubes having no internal electrodes and having the form of the characters to be displayed, the ends of said tubes being so dimensioned and spaced that the tubes may be interchangeably fitted within said sockets, said sockets constituting external electrodes ,for supplying the high frequency current to the discharge tubes. I

3. A" sign comprising a supporting base, a plurality of equally spaced sockets carried by said supporting base, a high frequency generator connected to supply high frequency current to said sockets, luminous electric discharge tubes having the form of the characters to be displayed, the ends of which tubes are so dimensioned and spaced that the tubes may be interchangeably mounted in said sockets in order to feed the tubes from the high frequency current, and a metallic screen enclosing the conductive parts to which high frequency current is fed.

4. A sign comprising a supporting base, a plurality of conducting sockets equally spaced along the'length of said base, a high frequency generator connected to feed high frequency current to said sockets, a Iplurality of luminous electric discharge tubes having no internal electrodes and having the form of the characters to be displayed, the ends of said tubes being so dimensioned and spaced that the tubes .may be interchangeably fitted within said sockets, said sockets constituting external electrodes for supplying the high frequency current to the discharge tubes, and a metallic screen enclosing the conductive parts to which high frequency current is fed.

5. A 'supporting base comprising a metallic tubular casing, a plurality of equally spaced apertures formed in one surface of said casing, a tubular metallic socket arranged beneath each of said apertures, insulating material carrying said sockets and insulatingly supporting them from the casing and from one another, and a conductor connected to said sockets for supplying high frequency energy thereto.

6. A sign comprising a metallic tubular casing, a plurality of equally spaced apertures formed vin one surface of said casing, a tubular metallic socket arranged beneath each of said apertures, insulating material carrying said sockets and insulatingly supporting them from the casing and from one another, a high vfrequency generator, a

v10 socket arranged lbeneath each of said apertures, insulating material carrying said sockets and in-.

sulatingly supporting them from thecasing and from one another, a high frequency generator, a conductor connecting the output from. said gen- 15 erator to said sockets a plurality of ."luminous electric discharge tubes having nointernal electrodes and having the form of characters to be displayed, the ends of which are so dimensioned.

and vspaced that the tubes' may be interchange- 20 ably mounted in said sockets. said sockets'con- 'stituting external electrodes for the discharge tubes; t

8. 4A base part comprising a metallic tube of rectangular cross section, a plurality of apertures- 25 in one surface of said tube, a strip of insulating material arranged within said metallic tube and Abeneath the apertures therein, a plurality of smaller apertures in said insulating material and arranged below the apertures in 'the tube, a metallic socket arranged within each of saidapertures 5 in the insulating strip, and an electric conductor connected to said sockets.v

9. A sign comprising a metallic tube of rectangular cross section, a plurality of apertures in one surface of said tube, a'strip of insulating 10 material arranged within said metallic tube'and beneath the apertures therein, a plurality ,of smaller apertures in said insulating material and arranged below the apertures in the tube, a metallic socket arranged within eachv of said15 lapertures in the insulating strip, an electric conductor connected to said sockets, a high frequency generator, a conductor connecting the output from said generator tosaid sockets, aplurality of luminous electric discharge tubes having the form zo Y. of the characters to be displayed, the ends o! which are so dimensioned and spaced that the tubesA may be'interchangeably mounted in said sockets. v

JQSEPH FODQR. 25 

